CVD film forming method in which a film formation preventing gas is supplied in a direction from a rear surface of an object to be processed

ABSTRACT

A CVD film forming apparatus includes a susceptor, provided in a process chamber, having a surface of an area smaller than that of a wafer. A process gas is supplied to a top surface of the wafer mounted on the susceptor, thereby forming a CVD film on the top surface. A film formation preventing gas is supplied in a direction from the rear surface of the wafer toward a peripheral edge thereof at a flow rate which prevents the process gas from flowing to the rear surface of the wafer.

This application is a division of application Ser. No. 09/112,452 filedJul. 9, 1998 now Pat. No. 6,045,862.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a CVD film forming method and apparatusfor forming a film or layer by CVD on an object to be processed, such asa semiconductor wafer.

In the process of manufacturing a semiconductor device, a metal ormetallic compound film is formed on a semiconductor wafer made of, forexample, silicon, by CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition), so that anintegrated circuits can be formed on the wafer. For example, an Al filmis formed on the main surface of the semiconductor wafer as follows.First, the semiconductor wafer is placed on a susceptor with anelectrostatic chuck in a process chamber. The susceptor has a ceramicbase member in which a heating member is embedded. While thesemiconductor wafer is being heated by electricity supplied to theheating member, a process gas, e.g., dimethylaluminumhydride (DMAH) isintroduced at a predetermined flow rate into the process chamber througha shower head provided above the susceptor. As a result, an Al film isformed on the surface of the semiconductor wafer.

To form an Al film, an electrostatic chuck having a diameter slightlysmaller than that of the semiconductor wafer is used. The semiconductorwafer is held on the susceptor such that the circumferential edge of thesemiconductor wafer is slightly projected from the electrostatic chuck,thereby preventing film formation on the electrostatic chuck.

However, in this case, the process gas flows to the rear surface of theprojected portion of the semiconductor wafer and a film is formedthereon. If a film is formed on the rear surface of the semiconductorwafer, the film may be removed during a transfer or other processes,resulting in particles.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a CVD film formingmethod and apparatus, for forming a film on a main surface of an objectto be process, while effectively preventing a film from being formed ona rear surface of the object.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provideda CVD film forming apparatus comprising:

a process chamber;

a susceptor, provided in the process chamber, having a surface of anarea at least the substantially same as that of an object to beprocessed, the surface being entirely covered by a first surface of theobject to be processed mounted on the susceptor;

process gas supplying means for supplying a process gas to a secondsurface of the object to be processed mounted on the susceptor, therebyforming a film on the second surface; and

film formation preventing gas supplying means for supplying filmformation preventing gas in a direction from the first surface of theobject to be processed toward a peripheral edge thereof at a flow ratewhich can prevent the process gas from flowing to the first surface ofthe object to be processed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provideda CVD film forming method, wherein an object to be processed is mountedon a susceptor provided in a process chamber and a process gas issupplied to a main surface of the object to be processed, therebyforming a film on the object to be processed, the method comprising astep of supplying film formation preventing gas in a direction from arear surface of the object to be processed toward a peripheral edgethereof, the film formation preventing gas having a flow rate whichprevents the process gas from flowing to the rear surface of the objectto be processed at the peripheral edge of the object to be processed.

With the above apparatus and method, when the film formation preventinggas is supplied from the rear surface of the object to be processedtoward the peripheral edge thereof, the flow rate of the gas is set to avalue which can prevent the process gas from flowing to the rear surfaceof the object to be processed at the peripheral edge of the object.Therefore, film formation on the rear surface of the object by theprocess gas is prevented.

It is preferable that the surface of the susceptor has an area smallerthan that of the object to be processed, so that the object to beprocessed is mounted on the susceptor so as to have a projected portionin a peripheral portion of the object to be processed, which isprojected from the susceptor; and the film formation preventing gassupplying means have a ring-shaped member constituting a passage throughwhich the film formation preventing gas flows toward the peripheral edgeof the object to be processed on a side of the first surface in theprojected portion of the object to be processed. As a result of thisstructure, when the object to be processed is mounted on the susceptorsuch that the peripheral portion thereof is projected from thesusceptor, a passage is formed so that the film formation preventing gasflows to the peripheral edge of the object through the rear surface ofthe projected portion of the object. Thus, the film formation preventinggas effectively prevents the process gas from flowing to the rearsurface of the object to be processed.

It is preferable that the ring-shaped member has an inner flange portionon an inner circumferential surface thereof, the inner flange portionhaving a surface opposing with a predetermined gap to the first surfaceof the object to be processed mounted on the susceptor in the projectedportion, thus defining a first part of the passage between the surfaceof the inner flange portion and the first surface of the object to beprocessed. It is also preferable that, where the first portion of thepassage has a length L (m), a process gas has a diffusion constant D(m²/s) and the film formation preventing gas flows at a flow rate v(m/s), the length L and the flow rate v are set to satisfy a conditionof Lv/D>1. Thus, the film formation preventing gas effectively preventsthe process gas from flowing to the rear surface of the object to beprocessed.

The ring-shaped member is preferably made of non-metallic material. Inthis case, since non-metallic material has a lower thermal conductivitythan metal, thermal reaction on the ring-shaped member is suppressed.Consequently, film formation on the ring-shaped member can be prevented.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth inthe description which follows, and in part will be obvious from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objectsand advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means ofthe instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed outhereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of the specification, illustrate presently preferred embodiments ofthe invention, and together with the general description given above andthe detailed description of the preferred embodiments given below, serveto explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a CVD film forming apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing part of the CVD filmforming apparatus shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining conditions for preventing a processgas from turning to the rear surface of a wafer by a film formationpreventing gas.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with referenceto the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a CVD film forming apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. The film formingapparatus has a substantially cylindrical airtight chamber 1 made ofmetal, such as aluminum. In a central portion of the chamber 1, a basemember 3 made of, for example, alumina, is mounted such that the uppersurface thereof is horizontal. An electric heater 4 is embedded in acentral portion of the upper surface portion of the base member 3. Asusceptor 2 for horizontally supporting an object to be processed, e.g.,a semiconductor wafer W, is placed on the upper surface of the basemember 3. The susceptor 2 is made of, for example, alumina, and includesan electrostatic chuck on a main surface thereof to attract thesemiconductor wafer W with static electricity. The electrostatic chuckhas an area the substantially same as or smaller than that of thesemiconductor wafer W, so that it can be covered by the wafer to preventthe top surface of the electrostatic chuck from being exposed within thechamber and a film may not be formed on the chuck. In this embodiment,the electrostatic chuck has a diameter smaller than that of the wafer.Thus, the circumferential edge of the wafer is entirely projected fromthe electrostatic chuck, and therefore from the susceptor.

The base member 3 comprises a large-diameter portion having a diametersubstantially the same as that of the susceptor, and a cylindricalsupport member 5 having a smaller diameter integrally extending downwardfrom a central portion of the large-diameter portion. The support member5 is attached to the bottom of the chamber 1 at its lower end by acylindrical attachment member 6, the circumferential wall of which hasan L-shaped cross section. In the circumferential wall of the attachmentmember, a plurality of gas passage openings are arranged at intervals inthe circumferential direction. Alternatively, the attachment member canbe constituted by a plurality of attachment pieces, which are arrangedat intervals in the circumferential direction, such that a gas passageis defined by adjacent pieces.

The support member 5 includes an internal space 5 a extending in thevertical direction along the central axis thereof. A thermoelectriccouple 7 having a temperature measuring portion in the susceptor 2 andan electric supply line 8 for supplying electricity to the heater 4 areinserted in the internal space 5 a. The thermoelectric couple 7 and theelectric supply line 8 extend out of the chamber and are respectivelyconnected to a controller 7 a and a power source 8 a connected to thecontroller. With this structure, the thermoelectric couple 7 detects atemperature of the susceptor 2 and thus a temperature of the wafer Wmounted thereon, and the controller 7 a controls a voltage supplied fromthe power source 8 a to the heater 4 in accordance with the detectedtemperature.

The susceptor 2 includes a lower circular portion having a comparativelylarge diameter and an upper circular portion having a slightly smallerdiameter, thus forming a step portion on the circumferential surface.The semiconductor wafer W is placed on the upper portion of thesusceptor 2. A shield ring or ring-shaped member 9 is arranged aroundthe upper portion of the susceptor 2, spaced a little from the susceptorand the wafer W. The shield ring is made of nonmetallic material, suchas alumina or zirconia. An inner flange portion 9 a is integrallyprojected from an inner circumferential surface of a lower portion ofthe shield ring 9. The shield ring 9 is arranged such that the innerflange portion is located between the under surface of a circumferentialedge portion of the wafer and the upper surface of the lower portion ofthe susceptor and that the inner circumferential surface of an upperportion of the shield ring 9 is opposed to the circumferential surfaceof the wafer. It is preferable that a tapered portion 9 b be formed inthe inner circumferential surface of the upper portion of the shieldring 9, as shown in FIG. 2. The upper surface of the shield ring 9 isattached to a lower surface of an inner flange portion 10 a of an uppershield tube 10, the circumferential wall of which has an L-shaped crosssection. The inner circumferential surface of the shield tube 10 extendsin the vertical direction with a very short distance to the outercircumferential surfaces of the shield ring 9 and the large-diameterportions of the susceptor 2 and the base member 3. A lower shield tube11 is attached to an inner circumferential surface of a lower endportion of the upper shield tube 10, at its upper end. The lower shieldtube 11 has a circumferential wall having an L-shaped cross section. Itcomprises an outer flange portion 11 a having an upper surface whichfaces the lower surface of the base member 3 with a small gap. It alsocomprises a cylindrical portion 11 b spaced a predetermined distancefrom the support member 5, defining a space 13 therebetween. The lowerend portion of the cylindrical portion 11 b is attached to theattachment portion 6. Thus, the upper and lower shield tubes 10 and 11and the shield ring 9 are stationary fixed to the chamber 1.

A gas introducing pipe 14 for introducing a film formation preventinggas into the chamber is inserted into a portion of the cylindricalportion 11 b of the lower shield tube 11. One end of the gas introducingpipe 14 is opened in the space 13. The gas introducing pipe 14 extendsout of the chamber through the circumferential wall of the chamber 1 andis connected to a gas supply source 15 at the other end for supplying afilm formation preventing gas, for example, Ar gas into the space 13.The film formation preventing gas supply source 15 has, for example, amass flow controller, to select a desired flow rate and/or pressure ofAr gas supplied to the chamber. A first gap between the upper surface ofthe outer flange portion 11 a of the lower shield tube 11 and the lowersurface of the large-diameter portion of the base member 3 is continuousto a second gap between the inner circumferential surface of the uppershield tube 10 and the outer circumferential surfaces of thelarge-diameter portion of the base member 3 and the lower portion of thesusceptor 2. The second gap is continuous to a third gap between theupper surface of the lower portion of the susceptor 2 and the lowersurface of the shield ring 9. The third gap is continuous to a fourthgap between the outer circumferential surface of the upper portion ofthe susceptor 2 and the inner circumferential surface of the innerflange portion 9 a of the shield ring 9. The fourth gap is continuous toa fifth gap between the upper surface of the inner flange portion 9 band the lower surface of the extended peripheral end of thesemiconductor wafer W. The fifth gap is continuous to a sixth gapbetween the circumferential surface of the wafer W and the taperedsurface of the shield ring 9. The second to sixth gaps are identified bysymbols 12 a to 12 e in FIG. 2. The first gap communicates with thespace 13, and the sixth gap communicates with a process space within thechamber 1, thus constituting a film formation preventing gas passage 12extending from the space 13 to the process space.

A cylindrical box 16 is attached to the bottom wall of the chamber 1.The upper end of the box 16 is covered by the bottom surface of thesupport member 5 and the lower end portion thereof is projected from thebottom wall. An exhaust port 17 is formed in a bottom wall of the box 16and connected to an exhaust system 18. When a vacuum pump provided inthe exhaust system 18 is operated, the pressure in the chamber 1 can bereduced to a predetermined degree through the box and the gas passageopenings formed in the attachment member 6.

A shower head 20 is mounted to the upper wall of the chamber 1 so as toface the semiconductor wafer W placed on the susceptor 2 with apredetermined distance therebetween, such that the aforementionedprocess space can be defined. The shower head 20 has an inner space 22,and a lower wall which faces the semiconductor wafer 2 and has a numberof gas outlet holes 21. A gas introducing port 23 is formed in a centralportion of the upper wall of the chamber 1 to communicate with the space22. The gas introducing port 23 is connected through a pipe 24 to aprocess gas supply system 25 for supplying a process gas containing afilm forming gas (e.g., DMAH) for forming an Al film and a carrier gas(e.g., H₂ gas). The process gas is supplied from the process gas supplysystem 25 through the pipe 24 and the gas introducing port 23 to theinner space 22 of the shower head 20, and then discharged through thegas outlet holes 21 into the process space, i.e., toward thesemiconductor wafer W.

In the above structure, as shown in FIG. 2, the film formationpreventing gas passage 12 is constituted by the first gap continuous tothe space 13, and the second to sixth gaps 12 a to 12 e continuous toone another in sequence. As shown in FIG. 2 in detail, the filmformation preventing gas is passed through the first to sixth gaps orpaths from the space 13, and flows from the rear surface of theprojected portion of the semiconductor wafer W toward thecircumferential surface thereof, as indicated by the arrow.

A film forming operation in the CVD film forming apparatus having theabove structure will now be described.

First, a semiconductor wafer W is transferred into the chamber 1 by atransfer arm (not shown) and placed on the susceptor 2 which has beenheated at a predetermined temperature by the heater 4. Then, the chamber1 is exhausted by the vacuum pump of the exhaust system 18, so that thepressure of the chamber is reduced to about several Torrs and thesemiconductor wafer W is drawn to the electrostatic chuck.

In this state, a process gas containing a film forming gas (e.g., DMAH)and a carrier gas (e.g., H₂ gas) is supplied from the process gas supplysystem 25 to the process space at a predetermined flow rate through theshower head 20, thus starting a process of forming an Al film.

At the same time as supplying the process gas, a film formationpreventing gas or purge gas is supplied from the film formationpreventing gas supply source 15 through the gas introducing pipe 14 tothe space 13, and flows through the passage 12 from the rear surface ofthe projected portion of the semiconductor wafer W to thecircumferential surface of the wafer. The flow rate of the filmformation preventing gas is preset to such a value as to prevent thefilm forming gas from turning to the rear surface side of the wafer W.Therefore, the film formation gas does not turn to the rear surface sideof the semiconductor wafer, so that film formation on the exposedportion of the rear surface can be prevented. For this reason, particlesdue to removal of a film formed on the rear surface of the semiconductorwafer W are not generated.

The shield ring 9 is made of nonmetallic material, such as alumina orzirconia, which generally has a lower thermal conductivity than metal.In addition, the shield ring 9 is separated by the passage 12 from theheated susceptor 2. Therefore, the temperature of the shield ring 9 iskept low, so that thermal reaction on the shield ring 9 is suppressed.Consequently, film formation on the shield ring 9 can be suppressed.

Conditions for prohibiting the process gas from turning to the rearsurface side of the semiconductor wafer W by means of flow of a filmformation preventing gas will be described on the basis of modelcalculations.

In the following, movement of the process gas due to diffusion andreverse movement of the process gas due to flow of the film formationpreventing gas in the fifth gap 12 b of the passage 12 will be describedwith reference to FIG. 3.

Assuming that the path length (the length in the horizontal directionbetween the inner circumferential edge of the inner flange portion 9 aand the circumferential edge of the semiconductor wafer) is L (m), thediffusion constant of the process gas is D (m²/S), the concentration ofthe process gas is Co (mol/m³), the number of moles of the process gasmoved by diffusion in a unit area in a unit time from the right to theleft in FIG. 3 is expressed by the following formula (1):

D×(Co/L)[mol/m ² ·s]  (1)

Assuming that the flow rate of the film formation preventing gas is v(m/s), the number of moles of the process gas moved by flow of the filmformation preventing gas in a unit area in a unit time from the left tothe right in FIG. 3 is expressed by the following formula (2):

v·Co [mol/m ² ·s]  (2)

If the value of the formula (2) is greater than that of the formula (1),the process gas can be prevented from turning to the rear exposedsurface side of the semiconductor wafer W. As a result, film formationon the rear surface of the semiconductor wafer W can be effectivelyprevented. In other words, if the condition Lv/D>1, preferably Lv/D>>1,is satisfied, film can be effectively prevented from being formed on therear surface of the projected portion of the semiconductor wafer W.

For example, it is assumed that the diameter d of the semiconductorwafer is 200 mm, the path length L is 1.5 mm, the width δ of the path(see FIG. 3) is 0.3 mm, the temperature of the atmosphere in the chamberis 210° C., the pressure is 2 Torr, DMAH serving as a film forming gasis supplied at the flow rate of 1000 sccm and H₂ gas serving as acarrier gas is supplied at the flow rate of 100 sccm.

In this case, it is assumed that a film formation preventing gas (Argas) is caused to flow at the rate of 1000 sccm. This flow rate isconverted to a volume flow rate Qa (m³/s) at 210° C. and 2 Torr asfollows.

Qa(m ³ /s)={(1000×10⁻⁶)/60}×{(273+210)/273}×(760/2)=11.2×10⁻³(m ³ /s)

A jetting area A(m²) of the film formation preventing gas is obtained bythe following equation.

A(m ²)=π×d×δ=π×200×10⁻³×0.3×10⁻³=188×10⁻⁶(m ²)

Therefore, the flow rate v of the film formation preventing gas isobtained by the following equation.

V=Qa/A=59.6(m/s)

The diffusion constant of a mixture gas of DMAH of the flow rate of 1000sccm and H₂ gas of the flow rate of 100 sccm under the conditions of210° C. and 2 Torr is D=0.028 (m²/s). In this case, the value of Lv/D iscalculated as follows.

Lv/D=(1.5×10⁻³×59.6)/0.028=3.19

Since the value is sufficiently greater than 1, it is confirmed thatfilm formation on the rear surface of the projected portion of thesemiconductor wafer W can be prevented by the film formation preventinggas of the flow rate of 1000 sccm under the aforementioned conditions.

The diffusion constant D is a function of a molecular weight of gas, adiameter of a molecule, a pressure and a temperature. The constant D iscalculated each time on the basis of the kind of gas, the processpressure, and the temperature.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but can bemodified variously. For example, although Ar gas is used as a filmformation preventing gas or purge gas in the above embodiment, it ispossible to use another inert gas, such as He or N₂ gas, or a reducinggas such as H₂ gas. Alternatively, it is possible to use a process gasof a temperature at which a film is not formed, for example, the roomtemperature or lower. Further, the process gas is not limited to thatused in the above embodiment, but various kinds of gas can be used inaccordance with the kind of film to be formed. Although the susceptor ofthe above embodiment has an electrostatic chuck, it is not necessarythat the susceptor have an electrostatic chuck. Furthermore, theembodiment wherein an Al film is formed has been described, the presentinvention can be applied to formation of another film. Further, theobject to be processed is not limited to a semiconductor wafer, but canbe a glass substrate of a liquid crystal display.

Additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to thoseskilled in the art. Therefore, the invention in its broader aspects isnot limited to the specific details and representative embodiments shownand described herein. Accordingly, various modifications may be madewithout departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventiveconcept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A CVD film forming apparatus comprising: aprocess chamber; a susceptor, provided in the process chamber, having asurface of an area smaller than that of an object to be processed, thesurface being entirely covered by a first surface of the object to beprocessed mounted on the susceptor; process gas supplying means forsupplying a process gas to a second surface of the object to beprocessed mounted on the susceptor, thereby forming a film on the secondsurface; and film formation preventing gas supplying means for supplyingfilm formation preventing gas in a direction from the first surface ofthe object to be processed toward a peripheral edge thereof at a flowrate which can prevent the process gas from flowing to the first surfaceof the object to be processed, wherein: the object to be processed isadapted to be mounted on the susceptor so as to have a projected portionin a peripheral portion of the object to be processed, which isprojected from the susceptor; the film formation preventing gassupplying means has a ring-shaped member constituting a passage throughwhich the film formation preventing gas flows toward the peripheral edgeof the object to be processed on a side of the first surface in theprojected portion of the object to be processed; and the ring-shapedmember has an inner flange portion on an inner circumferential surfacethereof, the inner flange portion having a surface adapted to oppose,with a predetermined gap, the first surface of the object to beprocessed mounted on the susceptor in the projected portion, thusdefining a first part of the passage between the surface of the innerflange portion and the first surface of the object to be processed. 2.The CVD film forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the surfaceof the susceptor has an electrostatic chuck for attracting the object tobe processed by means of electrostatic force.
 3. The CVD film formingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the film formation preventinggas supplying means supplies an inert gas, reduction and/or process gasas film formation preventing gas.
 4. The CVD film forming apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the inner circumferential surface of thering-shaped member includes a tapered portion opposing with apredetermined gap to the peripheral edge of the object to be processed,a second part of the passage being defined between the peripheral edgeand the tapered portion.
 5. The CVD film forming apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein, where the first part of the passage has a length L(m), a process gas has a diffusion constant D (m²/s) and the filmformation preventing gas flows at a flow rate v (m/s), the length L andthe flow rate v are set to satisfy a condition of Lv/D>1.
 6. The CVDfilm forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ring-shapedmember is arranged apart from the susceptor and made of non-metallicmaterial.